Throw Me to The Wolves & I Will Return Leading the Pack
Summary:Morgan, the newest member of SVU hasn't had much luck with men, but her new partner might just be the one for her, if only she could let Sonny Carisi know. Men come much easier to her friend Riley, who's maybe not prepared for the challenge that Peter Stone provides.
Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters of Law and Order SVU, Morgan and Riley however are all mine.
Chapter 21:
It was months down the road and Riley had been in the middle of getting ready for Morgan's bachelorette party when it occurred to her that maybe she should just double check and make sure that the first round of her artificial insemination actually hadn't worked like she originally believed.
Alas, when she had peed on the stick, it had said she wasn't pregnant. It was a bittersweet moment; she was definitely sad that it hadn't worked but another part of her was excited because that meant she could drink freely tonight at the party. She wanted to do the bachelorette party justice; Morgan deserved that much from her.
When she walked down the stairs in her super revealing black dress, Peter looked her over from his spot on the couch, a Yankees game playing on the television that he was half watching. She wandered in and sat down next to him, crossing her legs tightly so as not to let anything hang out. It was a dress she had bought specifically for this event and now, as she was wearing it, she was starting to regret it.
It was almost too tight and she kept finding herself pulling the skirt part down and the chest part up.
"I can't believe you're actually going to a strip club." Peter shook his head but he wasn't upset by it, he was more amused.
"Hey, I promised Mo a good time."
"So long as you don't go home with a stripper…" He prodded, giving her thigh a gentle pat.
"Pfft, strippers are no DA Mr. Stone. You're the only man for me."
Peter offered her a smile and shook his head. He completely trusted her, she hadn't so much as looked at another man since they had started dating, yet the whole night made him feel a little uneasy. She was going out with Morgan and some friends to a strip club to get drunk. What could possibly go wrong?
"Be safe."
Riley flashed him a grin and made her way to her feet. Not surprisingly she wasn't wearing her actual 'fuck me' heels, no, instead she had on a pair of strappy wedges that were probably more practical for when she came stumbling home after a few too many shots. Plus, her 'fuck me' heels were reserved for Peter more often than not.
"Tell me who wins later." She nodded towards the television and he gave her a cheeky thumbs up before heading towards the door.
She grabbed her leather jacket from inside the closet and slipped her purse over her shoulder, watching out the front door for her ride. When she saw headlights, she whipped open the front door and ran out to the car, slapping her hand on the driver's side window where Sonny could easily be seen through the glass.
In the front passenger's seat was Morgan, Bella and Amanda were in the backseat which is where Riley quickly climbed in. When her seatbelt was done up, she flashed a grin to all the girls and gave Sonny's shoulder a pat.
"Strip club!" Riley whooped and Morgan turned to face her, beaming with excitement. "I have so many dollar bills in my purse."
"Same!" Morgan hollered, the other two girls agreeing. It was so cute to see Morgan this excited, especially for something as out there as a strip club, but it was her bachelorette party and Riley had promised her a good time.
Slutty outfits, sexy shoes, male dancers and alcohol. It sounded like the perfect night and with the plan to let loose and enjoy themselves, each girl seemed excited to get the night started.
"Not sure how you convinced me that this was a good idea." Sonny remarked as he backed out of the driveway, pulling onto the road and heading towards the very strip club that Riley had told him about. "You're going to be my wife; I shouldn't be letting you look at other men."
"Yeah well, that's all I'm doing is looking." Morgan giggled.
"And slipping bills in their undies." Amanda pointed out and Sonny shot the woman a glare in the rear-view mirror.
"I just want you to have fun, but also be safe." Sonny said.
"I'm a cop, and so is Amanda. We'll be fine." Morgan snorted. "Honestly Sonny Bunny, you're the best fiancé a girl could ask for."
Sonny merely threw her a smile and soon enough the girls were off talking about all the wonderful fun they were going to have. He tried to tune them out because he didn't want to hear much about their plans for the night, not that he wasn't okay with Morgan going, he just didn't want to hear his sister talk about strippers, nor did he want to listen to his former partner squeal about erotic dances.
He was perfectly content letting Morgan go, he trusted her, but he still found the whole idea a little off-putting. It didn't matter though, he wasn't going to tell her she couldn't do something. Anyways, she was his fiancé and he had faith that she knew how to handle herself.
When he pulled into the small parking lot of the strip club, the girls practically jumped out of the back but Morgan hesitated, leaning across the console to press a sweet little kiss against his cheek.
"Love you Bunny boy." She murmured. "I'll be home before you know it."
"Be safe." Sonny countered and Morgan freed herself of her seatbelt and opened the door, setting her feet on the ground. "And make good choices."
"Okay dad!" Amanda hollered back at him and he rolled his eyes.
It didn't matter though; Morgan had shut the door and the four of them were heading for the entrance to the strip club. Morgan had a sash across her deep navy dress that read 'bride-to-be' so that everyone in the club knew what was going on. Amanda and Bella were dressed very appropriately for the occasion, as was Morgan, each of them with an almost skanky dress and matching shoes.
It was going to be the greatest night ever!
Riley was quick to check her coat and head off to the bar, rounding up a waitress to bring them shots to their table, which Amanda had claimed, Bella and Morgan sitting there with her. When Riley appeared, she flopped dramatically into the last remaining chair and the waitress set down a bunch of shots shortly after.
Amanda doled them out so that each girl had three shots in front of them, then she took hold of one of her shots, lifted it into the air above the middle of the table and waited for the rest of the girls to follow suit.
"To Morgan Loughton, soon to be Morgan Carisi!" She toasted and they clinked their tiny glasses, throwing back their first shot and each one of them slamming the empty glass onto the table.
Riley grabbed her second one and lifted it into the air this time, the other three repeating the same motion, "May you have a long and happy marriage."
They clinked glasses again, set the empties on the table and Bella was quick to grab the last shot in front of her, raising it up for her very own toast.
"To my brother's future wife, welcome to the family and too bad my sisters are bitches."
"Thank Christ they're not here." Riley muttered and stood up from the table, disappearing back towards the bar.
A stripper on the stage seemed to finish his routine and the lights in the club lowered, Morgan getting excited to watch a stripper do his thing from the very beginning. She dug into her purse and pulled out a rather large wad of ones, setting it on the table. Amanda and Bella did the same, grinning at Morgan and when Riley came back with four bottles of beer in her hand, she quickly set them on the table and pulled out her stack of ones.
Hell yes, it was going to be a great night.
A good hour into watching the different guys dancing and taking their clothes off, Morgan was feeling pretty good. She was enjoying herself and she was relaxed while watching the latest man, who was dressed like a policeman, close in on her. He held out a pair of shiny silver cuffs but when he approached her, she motioned the man towards Bella, not wanting to do anything bad.
Sonny had told her to make good choices, and even though she was definitely loaded up on alcohol, she knew better than to let a stripper cop put handcuffs on her. She couldn't help but let out a loud whooping laugh as the stripper put one hand cuff on Bella's wrist and the other on his own before bringing her up on stage, setting her down on a chair (which he had brought out at the beginning) and began dancing against her.
Morgan grabbed about five ones, balled them up in her hands and just threw them as hard as she could at the man, then she grabbed another handful and did it again, knowing that Bella was enjoying herself by the giant grin on her future sister-in-law's face.
It was such a nice night without having Gina and Theresa there, they would've ruined it with their constant bitching about how the girls were dressed like sluts, or how the guys were sinning because they were taking their clothes off- okay Morgan wasn't sure if that really was a sin, but she was pretty drunk and didn't really care.
They could sin all they wanted, so long as they kept dancing.
Riley set another shot in front of her, this one was a fun blue colour, and Morgan tossed it back before anyone could make a toast. She didn't care anymore, she just wanted to keep having fun.
And fun she had. Music started playing louder and the man on stage took an intermission of sorts, which left the girls able to dance themselves. Amanda was grinding on Riley, who was lapping it up. Bella hesitated for a few seconds but when Amanda hauled her in, she joined them in their raunchy dancing that was starting to look more like an orgy than innocent dancing. Morgan leapt in the middle and let the girls dance on her, not stopping her movements until the lights went back down low and the next male dancer came out on stage.
This one was special apparently because the entire club fell quiet. He was the star of the show though and when the man appeared on stage, Morgan looked at him in awe. He had the body of a Greek god, his abs looked like they were razor sharp and his body was completely hairless and coated in a thin layer of something that made him shine.
He was literally the perfect man, but he still wasn't her Sonny Bunny.
Amanda fisted the remaining dollar bills that she had brought and when the man danced over to their table, she was quick to stuff them all in the waistband of his underwear, which looked an awful lot like a thong.
Morgan couldn't help herself and she started giggling, pointing in the vague direction of the dancing man.
Riley leaned in close to her and Morgan muttered the word 'thong' before breaking into full on laughter, bringing her friend along with her.
The two of them were cackling by the time the man sauntered off the stage, effectively ending the show. Riley leaned against Morgan and ran her hand across her back, petting her and murmuring 'good Morgan'.
"How do you get a stripper's number?" Bella cried out and slapped her hand on the surface of the table. "I want it!"
"No Belle, he's not for you." Morgan countered but she kept laughing, at this point she wasn't even sure why anymore. "You need a nice man, like a Barba, or a Stone, or a Carisi."
"Carisi…Mo…" Riley seemed to be thinking hard but she shook her head and laughed along with Morgan, not even bothering to figure out that Bella would never get a Carisi because that was what she was. "Do you think Petey would get mad if I put money in his underwear?"
"Maybe try a bigger bill." Amanda tossed out. "He deserves more than ones."
Riley planted her purse on the table and opened it wide, looking into it. When she didn't see what she was looking for, she lifted it up and held it right against her face, Morgan poking the purse and laughing even harder. When Riley moved it away, she zipped it shut and leaned over Morgan, licking her shoulder.
"Should I call our ride?" Morgan quipped and opened her own purse, pulling out her phone and putting it on the table. "Who's driving us home?"
"I don't know, call 9-1-1." Bella murmured, her words slurring.
"No Belle, now's not an emergency." Morgan shook her head hard, stopping after a few movements because her vision blurred. She gingerly leaned forward and set her head on the table, looking at the side of her phone. "Who we gunna call?"
"Ghostbusters!" Riley cheered. "Do you have their number?"
Morgan awkwardly shook her head against the table and poked at her phone screen with her finger. When it didn't do anything, she growled at it, but Bella grabbed it, holding it up in front of her face.
"Call my brother!" She yelled at it but the phone did nothing. She tossed it back to the table and scowled at it not doing what she told it to do. "What about a cab?"
"Noooo." Morgan whined. "We deserve a limo."
"Yes!" Riley threw her hand up into the air. "Call the limo."
Morgan took her phone off the table and poked at it, the phone started ringing as she did so, completely coincidentally. She stared at it, her eyes wide in fear as it vibrated and rang in her hand.
"Ahh!" She screeched and tossed it into the air. Riley made a grab at it but missed completely, the phone hitting the table hard. She poked at the screen this time and picked it up, pressing it against her face but holding it upside-down.
"Yo?" Riley barked into the phone.
"You girls almost ready for me to pick you up?"
"Is this the Ghostbusters?" Riley asked, covering the bottom of the phone, which was actually the top, and turning to the other three girls, "it's Ghostbusters, what do I say?"
"Tell them we have ghosts that need busting." Amanda laughed.
"Okay." Riley nodded and moved her hand away from the phone. "Hello Mr. Buster sir, yes, we have ghosts that need busting."
"I ain't afraid of no ghost." Bella said wistfully, leaning against Amanda, who slipped her arm around her waist.
"Right, well I'll be there in about fifteen minutes. Can you be outside by then?"
"Sure thing Mr. Buster sir." Riley lifted up the hand not holding the phone and saluted, then she hung up the phone call and handed the phone back to Morgan. "They're on their way."
"Phew." Morgan sighed and leaned back in her chair. "I hope the ghosts don't get us before then."
Riley smiled and stood up, slipping her purse over her shoulder and looking around the room. She furrowed her eyebrows together and forgot what she was looking for, that is, until she spotted the sigh reading bathrooms tucked away in the corner. Without saying a word to the other girls, she headed in that direction but before she could get too far, the rest of them were following her, the four of them entering the bathroom and splitting up from there.
Riley disappeared into a stall while Amanda and Morgan stood at the sinks, Bella wandering into the handicap stall and slamming the door shut. Morgan pulled the tap up and water flowed out of the faucet, her hands going under the bone chilling stream of water. She cupped her hands and let them fill before tossing it in Amanda's direction. Fortunately, most of the water had leaked out of her hands and back into the sink.
Amanda swatted at her and slapped her in the ass, hard. Morgan yelped and Bella let out a scream from inside the stall. When she stepped out of it a minute later, she glared at Morgan and Amanda and stuck her hands under the cold water that was still running.
"Sounds like a waterfall." Bella remarked in awe and she moved her hands back and forth under it. "So pretty."
"You're so pretty." Morgan cooed, poking her in the cheek with her wet finger. "So cute."
Riley sauntered out of the stall with a giant grin on her face but she refused to say a word to them except for her claiming that she 'did something naughty in the bathroom'. That was it though, and she too ran her hands under the freezing cold water before drying them on the back of her dress and marching out of the bathroom.
The four of them stood just out of the way, everyone looking around and trying to figure out what to do next.
"We should go see if Mr. Buster is here yet." Morgan announced and pranced towards the door to the parking lot. Riley somehow managed to remember her jacket as she walked outside, slipping her arms into it as she did so, Amanda looping her arm through hers while Bella did the same with Morgan.
The quartet of girls wandered out onto the sidewalk just outside and when a car beeped at them, all four of them jumped. Sonny popped his head out the window and waved at them, but none of the girls moved. Morgan studied his face and broke out into a huge smile.
"My Bunny boy!" She cried out and took off in an awkward run towards the car, yanking on the door handle and pulling it open. She bent down and stuck her head into the car, meeting Sonny's curious gaze. "How'd you know where to find us?"
"I'll explain it to you later." He chirped.
Morgan waved the three girls forward and climbed into the front of the car, buckling herself in and setting her hands on the dashboard, running them over the smooth surface with a giggle. From the backseat, Sonny heard a ruckus and when he looked back there, he made a mental note that Riley was laying across Bella and Amanda's laps and not actually buckled in.
"You got to have a seatbelt there Ry." Sonny called to her and she raised her hand up trying to grasp anything that she could but finding nothing on the roof of the car. Sonny offered her his hand and she grabbed on, hauling herself upright and squishing her butt on the seat between Bella and Amanda. "You good?"
"I am drunk." Riley said with a smirk. "Oooo and horny."
"Samesies!" Morgan wiggled in her seat. Before Sonny had a grasp on things, Bella and Amanda had also admitted to being horny and without hesitating any more, fearing what might happen if he didn't get them all home soon, he took off from the strip club and began driving towards Riley's house, dropping them off in the reverse order that he picked them up in.
"So how were the strippers?" Sonny asked casually and Morgan leaned over, running her hand down the side of his head. She poked him in the earlobe and laughed.
"Pretty." She sighed. "Not like my Bunny boy though, you're the prettiest of them all."
"I need a Barba." Bella whimpered. "Or a Stone."
"Or a Carisi." Morgan threw out.
"You need to get laid." Riley said with a grin. "Come home with me girl, my man can handle two girls at once."
"How's that work?" Bella countered.
"Nope, we're not doing that. Everyone goes home to where they belong." Sonny announced and prayed to god that he could get them all home before something bad happened in the car.
When he finally pulled into Riley's driveway, she climbed over Amanda, pressed a kiss to the blonde's forehead and called out her goodbyes. Sonny waited in the driveway until Riley was on the front step, then he began to back out, still watching to make sure she got in.
After struggling for a minute with the lock, Peter pulled the door open and appeared in the frame, throwing a wave at Sonny, who felt comfortable enough to keep moving, working on getting the rest of the girls home.
"Hey there fella." Riley cooed and leaned against the door frame cheekily staring at Peter, who was studying her carefully. "Want to know a secret?"
"What's that?" Peter questioned and she flipped open her purse, digging through it for a moment before grabbing something inside.
"I'm not wearing any underwear." She grinned, looking up at him and he rolled his eyes, knowing that she was just messing with him. When she pulled her hand out of her purse though, there, dangling from her hand, were her underwear and his eyes widened at the sight of them. "Ha, took 'em off at the bar before we left."
"Riley." He hissed and she threw them at him, watching as they hit him in the chest and fell to the floor just inside their front door. She pushed her way past him, fighting with him for possession of the door and once she was inside, she shut it, locking it behind her. She continued to grin at him and he glanced from her to the floor where her underwear remained.
"What do you say fella?" She coaxed and pranced into the house further. He bent down and carefully grabbed her panties by the band, handing them back to her. "You want me to put 'em back on?"
"No."
"Huh okay, do you want to put them on?" She countered and smacked at his hand in a similar fashion to a cat batting at a toy. "Seems kind of weird but okay."
"Riley." He said with a groan.
"Peter." She whined, attempting to mimic him. "Come on, I'm drunk and horny."
"Maybe food?"
"Oh good idea. I could go for lobster." Riley hummed and kicked her shoes off, watching as they landed a good five feet away from her. "Seafood."
"We don't have lobster."
"Well shit on a stick." She cursed and wandered into the house further, finding herself in the living room instead of the kitchen. She looked over at the television and cocked her head sideways, jerking as Peter came up behind her and set his arm around her shoulder. "You waited up for me?"
"I did."
"Hmm but you didn't make me lobster?" She turned her head and looked at him. "Pfft, you fail."
He lifted his hand up but dropped it in amusement. Was she going to remember this in the morning? Probably not, but until she decided she wanted to go to sleep, he was going to have to deal with her, and that was something that he wasn't sure he was prepared to do.
He hadn't ever seen her this drunk, but hey, it was a special occasion.
"I saw guys tonight." She stated in a low tone. "They took their clothes off."
"That's what strippers tend to do."
"Yeah but none of them were as pretty as you." She purred. "You're so pretty I could marry you."
He couldn't help but smirk at her, "maybe one day."
"Oh!" She threw her hand up and pressed her palm against the side of his face. "Can I really?"
"If you're a good girl."
She widened her eyes at him and licked her lips, "but I'm so much better at being bad."
Peter wasn't sure what to do at that moment. She was clearly into the idea of them having sex but was she too drunk to consent? She clearly wanted it, she had said so herself when she walked in the front door, but was it okay?
"Sandwich? Then bed?" He offered instead and she blinked in thought before nodding her head yes.
"Lobster sandwich." She muttered, peeling herself away from him and heading back to the front door, still not being able to find her very own kitchen.
"The Yankees won by the way!" He called out after her.
"That's good." She called back. "Damn Rebels deserve to lose the civil war."
Peter shook his head and headed to the kitchen, praying that Riley would find her way there eventually. This wasn't what he was expecting when he had agreed to let her go out for a bachelorette party, but it's what he got.
All he had to do was get Riley fed and to bed, maybe by then she'd be sober enough that they could maybe even have sex.
XxxxxxXxxxxxXxxxxxX
"Bunny boy!" She called out as Sonny ushered her into their apartment.
He had managed to get every one of the girls home safe and now he was trying to get Morgan to be a little quieter, but she was clearly having too much fun singing and dancing in the hallway to their apartment. As soon as he got the door open, he gently shoved her inside and she let out a laugh, falling against the wall as he closed the door.
"Mo, you have to be quiet."
"Why?" She shot back, her eyes wide with wonder.
"Because of the neighbours."
"Oh." She looked around, confused. "I don't see any neighbours."
"They're on the other side of the walls."
Morgan turned sideways against the wall and pressed her palm flat against it, growling when her hand didn't immediately fall through it. She pulled her hand back a few inches and slapped the wall, again, nothing happened. When she moved her hand back even farther, Sonny grabbed it and jerked her towards him, Morgan giggling as he hugged her tight against him.
"I'm going to get you a man thong." Morgan said. "I saw so many tonight and I think you'd look good in one."
Sonny shook his head, there was no way he'd ever wear a thong, not even if he got paid a lot of money to do so.
She reached her hands up and squished his cheeks together, grinning as she poked, pressed and prodded his skin until he let out a yelp of pain. Her palms flattened against his cheeks and she ran her thumbs across the sides of his nose.
"I want…" she trailed off and stroked his nose a few more times with his thumbs. "You are my favourite."
"Your favourite?" He quipped, rather amused by her drunken rantings.
"My Carisi." She cooed. "Mother of dragons."
"Like I haven't heard that one before."
"Hey!" She shrieked and he lifted a hand up, gingerly pressing his finger against her mouth in a motion that suggested she be quiet. She licked his finger instead and he scoffed as he pulled it away. "We called the Ghostbusters tonight."
"Yeah? Were there ghosts at the strip club?"
"No, mostly men in thongs." Morgan nodded her head. "You should get a thong, I want you to wear a thong for me, will you wear a thong for me?"
The more she said the word, the more uncomfortable he got. He wasn't going to wear a thong, he would never wear a thong, but thank god Morgan was drunk and so easily distracted.
"Come on Mo, let's go to bed."
She nodded her head again but made absolutely no move to head in the direction of the bedroom, instead she remained standing in front of him, her hands still on his face and her eyes staring into his.
"Sonny Bunny, I'm sorry." She whimpered and he blinked at her. What the hell did she have to be sorry for, what had she done tonight- oh god, had she done something tonight?
"Mo, what…what are you sorry for?" He asked, though part of him didn't want to know the answer. She sucked in a breath but started laughing.
"I think we broke your sister." Morgan said and at the thought of Bella being broken, she sighed sadly, but just as suddenly as she had become sad, her eyes lit up in delight. "Maybe we fixed her. Yeah, that's better. Sorry Bunny boy, we fixed your sister."
Sonny blew out a sigh of relief. He trusted her, but drunk Morgan was a different story.
"That's okay." Sonny whispered. "So long as you guys all got home safe, that's all that counts."
"Yes, thanks to the Ghostbusters." Morgan beamed. "Bella ain't afraid of no ghosts."
"I picked you gals up." Sonny corrected her and Morgan shook her head no. "Yeah."
"No that doesn't make any sense, zero sense, negative sense." She carried on and finally pulled her hands away from his face, but they were quick to take up residence over his ears. He leaned forward and held his breath for a second, wondering if she was aware of how badly she smelled like alcohol. "Hey I got something to try."
She backed away from him and fished her wallet out of her purse. Once it was free, she tossed her purse to the floor, unzipped her wallet and pulled out two twenty-dollar bills before tossing her wallet to the floor with her purse. She smiled and took a step towards Sonny, grabbing at the waist of his pants.
He wasn't sure what to do so he remained stone still, merely watching as she tucked the two bills into the waistband of his pants. When she gave his side a pat and smiled at him, he reached out towards her, wanting to take her hand, but she slapped at it.
"Noooo, not how this works." She scolded. "I put money in your pants, now you take them off."
"Oh okay, I see what this is."
"A stripper show." She pointed at him. "Do you need music?"
"Mo I'm not-"
"Doo do da dum boop bop tweedle dee dee." She was making the most random noised and Sonny knew she was waiting for him to dance, or take his clothes off, but he planned on doing neither. When her hands came out to rest on his hips, he tensed but she merely forced him to bend side to side, controlling his movements. "La la la, badum badum."
"You maybe want some water?" He pressed, taking a step away from her and forcing her hands off his hips. "Or some juice or something?"
"Fruit punch." She cried out and spun around on her heels, making a break for the fridge.
"We don't have any…okay, well…"
She opened the fridge and looked inside, seeing nothing interesting, not until her eyes landed on the carton of milk. He watched as she pulled it out, carefully holding it with two hands before offering it to him.
"Moo juice." She raised her eyebrows. "Can I please have some moo juice?"
He let out a laugh at her request and nodded his head. Moo juice sounded like a great idea, he just hoped that once she drank it, she'd be ready to get into bed.
He had a long night and Sonny wanted nothing more than to cuddle up with his fiancé and fall fast asleep.
XxxxxxXxxxxxXxxxxxX
Riley couldn't remember waking up feeling this bad in…well, in forever. She felt awful, but the nice thing was that she was curled up in her bed with Peter right next to her keeping her company as she slowly came back to the world of the living. When she popped her eyes open, she took note that he was fully dressed and lounging in the pillows, his laptop on his lap so he could work.
She let out a groan and buried her face into the pillow, feeling his hand running across her back repeatedly.
"I set some aspirin and water on your nightstand." He stated and she rolled her head sideways, peeking up at him from her pillow.
"Ugh."
"Yeah, you were pretty drunk last night when you came home." Peter laughed, his hand still moving soothingly across her back. She struggled into a sitting position and looked down at the shirt she was wearing, furrowing her eyebrows at the giant Yankees symbol on the front. "They won by the way."
"That's good." She yawned, running her hands through her hair and over her face. Her limbs felt heavy and she wanted to curl up into a ball so that she could just go back to sleep until she felt less like death and more like a human being. "Sorry."
"For what?" She scooted over and into the pillows, sitting next to him and leaning against his side. Her eyes peered at his screen and she realized he was working. God how long had he been awake waiting for her to join in?
"Being super drunk last night." She offered.
"Don't forget horny."
"Well that's pretty much a given, and I'm not sorry for that." She forced a smile onto her face but her brain felt mushy and she immediately dropped it. "Did we actually-"
"Nope." Peter shook his head. "You were in no condition, so I made you a sandwich and you pretty much passed out on the bed."
Riley nodded her understanding and let her eyes fall shut, basking in the feeling of him being right there next to her. She knew last night had been bad but she hadn't realized how much alcohol she had consumed until this very moment. Her head was pounding and she felt like absolute shit.
"Did I take my underwear off before I got home?" She pressed, wincing as his arm came around her shoulders. She let her head fall against his shoulder and blew out a sigh.
"You did, then when you got home, you threw them at me."
"Right." Sighing, she slunk down in the bed and pulled the covers up, hiding beneath them.
"Aspirin and water." Peter repeated and gave her head a gentle pat. "It's on the nightstand."
"Please just let me wallow for a minute longer?" She pleaded and before she could figure out what was happening, he had the covers pulled away from her head and a look on his face that she rarely saw. Was he legitimately concerned about her? She was just hungover, severely so, it was nothing for him to worry about.
"I saw your pregnancy test." Peter blurted out and she stiffened next to him on the bed. He seemed to wait as she fumbled back into a sitting position, crossing her legs and resting her elbows on the insides of her knees.
"It was negative."
"I saw that too. I just want to make sure that your drinking last night had nothing to do with that." Peter pressed and she put her face in her hands, letting out a sigh. "Or if it did have something to do with the sheer amount you drank last night- talk to me."
"We can try it again." She leaned her head back, moving her hands away from her face. "We can go back to the clinic and do the whole artificial process all over again."
"And if it doesn't work this time?" He asked, and she knew that he was genuinely curious at this point in time. Sooner or later though, she figured he'd be more than just curious, he'd more than likely become frustrated. "What happens if it doesn't work this time?"
"Nothing, I don't know, we can do it as many times as we want."
"And how many times is that?" She could hear it in his voice. He was already getting emotional over this, not that she could blame him. When did it end for her? When did she decide to move on to the next step?
"One more time." She said with a nod of her head. "One more time trying artificial insemination, then we go to the next step."
"The next step." Peter echoed her words, and she pressed her lips together.
"In vitro."
"And how many times do we try that?"
She leveled him with a glare, "why are you talking like nothing is going to work? You don't know that it won't."
His face softened and he realized what she was suggesting. He didn't know what he was expecting her to say, but she had a point, he was already giving up before they even tried. It was all still so weird to him but she was the one struggling, she was the one who wanted a baby so bad she was willing to go through these processes, which were undoubtedly more uncomfortable for her than they were for him.
"How many times do we try in vitro?" Peter asked, his voice much softer than before. She let out a soft sigh and shrugged. "It's not that I don't want this with you, I just don't want to watch you get more and more defeated."
"I get that." She cocked her head sideways. "But I have to try. I just want this so bad."
"Then why don't we agree on a plan?" Peter tossed out and her body seemed to visibly relax. "You think two attempts with the whole artificial insemination thing, so what's a good number of tries for in vitro?"
Riley sucked in an anxious breath and considered his question. She hadn't put that much thought into it but she knew in vitro was way more expensive, which logically meant they should try it fewer times, but was once enough for her? Was twice?
"I don't know." Riley answered honestly. "What do you think?"
"Two?" He threw the number out but left it as more of a question.
"Two sounds…" she trailed off and seriously considered the idea of trying in vitro fertilization twice. It sounded like a fair number, but how desperate was she for a baby of her own? Could she move on after two attempts if nothing came from it? And if she did feel like she had to move on, what would be the step after that? "I don't know Peter. I don't even know what the hell's wrong with me. It's all so vague."
"Then we stick with two until we find more answers?"
She took his offer into consideration and slowly nodded her head yes. The idea of not being able to have a child of her very own was starting to terrify her. What if she honestly couldn't have children, even with all the invasive methods she was searching out? What was she willing to do in order to have a child?
Would she be able to adopt a child? Would that be the next idea to look into?
Why did it have to be so hard for her?
"I just want you to be okay." Peter said softly, extending his hand towards her and resting it on her knee. She met his eyes and nodded her head in understanding before placing her hand on top of his. "I want whatever makes you happy."
"Right now, that's you."
He smiled at her words and she crawled over to him, curling into his side and snuggling into his hold. Leaning over, he pressed a kiss to her forehead and she blew out a breath, thanking god she had managed to find a man who understood her and was so patient with her.
"Did I ask for a lobster sandwich last night?" She asked in a low tone and he laughed at her question.
"You did."
"God, really? I don't even like lobster." She confessed and yet again Peter laughed at her. "That is the last time I'm getting that drunk."
"What about at your bachelorette?"
Riley snorted at him and shook her head. Okay, maybe he knew her better than she thought- no, scratch that, he knew her just fine and honestly, he probably had a point. She would definitely be going out and having one last hurrah like Morgan had done the night before, and it was very possible she'd drink just as much as she had the night before too.
"Well maybe for my bachelorette, you'll make me some damn lobster." She teased and he wrapped his arm around her tighter, tucking her against his side as he pressed kiss after kiss along the side of her face. She squealed in delight and flailed slightly, knocking his laptop onto the bed beside his legs before crawling on top of him, straddling his thighs as he finally stopped his ministrations. "Hey so, I might not be drunk anymore but I'm pretty sure I'm still horny."
"I probably owe you for last night." He grinned.
"Definitely."
"Why don't we take this to the shower?"
Oh yes, a shower sounded really nice, and that's exactly what they'd do just as soon as she swallowed down her aspirin that he had left for her on her nightstand. What a gentleman he was.